As I am one of the many runners out there that use insoles to correct defective positions while walking and running, I found this quite interesting.
At the University of Utah engineering professor Stacy Bamberg recently developed a smart insole that seems to resemble the high technology Nike shoes and other Nike products for running. In this case, it goes beyond that, as this insole could help patients with prosthetic legs and people in rehab to correct walking abnormalities after a fracture or hip replacement.
The device is called Rapid Rehab and consists of a personalized gel insole embedded with force sensors, accelerometers and gyroscopes to detect the way a person walks. Rapid Rehab also contains a wireless transmitter to send data from sensors to a custom application for your smartphone that tracks and provides immediate visual, audio or sensory feedback to the user. The current version specifically contains two force-sensitive resistors that track the pressure the foot exerts when it is on the ground, as well as an accelerometer and a gyroscope to measure foot position and angle.
Image: copyright U News Utah
At present, the insole Rapid Rehab is used by amputees who want to reduce the limp when using a prosthetic leg. However, Bamberg expects it to be also used by physiotherapists and their patients who have received a hip replacement or suffered a bone fracture and need to correct their gait, since Rapid Rehab has proven to be less expensive than a gait-analysis laboratory study, more accurate than subjective observations of a physiotherapist, and faster in providing feedback.
Source: http://unews.utah.edu/news_releases/utah-engineering-prof-invents-smart-insole-to-correct-walking-abnormalities/
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